Mission and Goals

The Department of Physics is dedicated to teaching and scholarship, with an emphasis on achieving close student-faculty relationships. Our goals are to provide a rigorous grounding in the scientific process and a firm scientific understanding of the world, to foster critical thinking and to provide scientifically literate, liberally educated citizens through service and liberal education courses. We provide undergraduate and graduate majors with solid preparation in the discipline for advanced study or employment. Our scholarship should be inclusive, bringing faculty, graduate students and especially undergraduates into participation in the joy of learning at the frontiers of human intellectual endeavor.

The primary functional aspects of our mission can be classified as:

Educating and preparing students in our undergraduate majors programs for advanced study and/or employment following their graduation from Miami University.

Serving as a major contributor to the scientific and technological literacy of students through participation in the implementation of the Miami Plan.

Providing the knowledge, laboratory experience, and training in analytical reasoning and critical thinking required as the basis for advanced study for students majoring in other fields of science, mathematics, and engineering.

Developing the skills in basic physical science of present and future teachers in elementary and secondary schools, and providing opportunities for continuing education of the public of our region and nation.

Extending the expertise and competence in physics of our graduate students to prepare them for advanced study in the physical sciences and/or engineering or for employment.

Engaging in scholarly activity that will extend the base of human knowledge through research and enhance the educational aspects of the Department's mission.

Department of Physics

The Department of Physics is dedicated to teaching and scholarship, with an emphasis on achieving close student-faculty relationships. With three majors and interdisciplinary research, we provide students with solid preparation in the discipline for advanced study or employment.